In an apparatus for coupling two storage and/or transport units, for instance in the forms of vessels, containers, tubes and/or the like, for the purpose of a transfer of a product from a first storage and/or transport unit to a second storage and/or transport unit, the first unit has a first closing flap in a first pipe socket at a first end and in an active connection with at least one shaft. The second unit has a second closing flap in a second pipe socket at a second end. With a swivelling device and a safety device, the closing flaps are movable from a closed position wherein the first closing flap tightly closes the first storage and/or transport unit off from the atmosphere at the first end. The second closing flap tightly closes the second storage and/or transport unit off from the atmosphere at the second end and the two closing flaps and/or the two pipe sockets are movable relative to one another into a locked position. The two closing flaps and/or the two pipe sockets are firmly connected to one another. In an open position the closing flaps and/or pipe sockets are firmly connected to one another. At least one flow-through opening for the product is open from the first storage and/or transport unit into the second storage and/or transport unit, and are movable from the open position into the locked position as well as into the closed position.
Such an apparatus is disclosed, for example, by GB Letters Patent 888,541. Given the known device, the pipe sockets are rotatable relative to one another, whereby a bayonet closure is locked or unlocked by turning the pipe sockets relative to one another and, at the same time, the closing flaps are forced from the closed position into the open position or from the open position into the closed position, so that the locking position coincides with the open position. Such a lock is particularly disadvantageous in that the closing flaps can unintentionally detach from one another while changing from the closed position into the open position or vice versa, also due to the employment of only one bayonet closure. Moreover a cleaning before and/or after a product transfer or a refilling event in the open position is not possible in a locked position in order to avoid contamination of the atmosphere and/or the product to be refilled.
Further, DE 195 20 409 C1 discloses an apparatus for coupling containers to a blower and extraction device that enables a cleaning of the closing flaps before and/or after a refilling event to be accomplished with the apparatus. A seal is thereby utilized that, given a spacing of the closing flaps of, preferably, less than 15 mm, disadvantageously seals the space situated between the closing flaps, i.e. the impact chamber, off from the outside, with the exception of the regions of the bearing shells thereof. A sealing of the impact chamber from at least a part of the closing flaps is disclosed by DE 299 15 973. An interspace between the closing flaps that is sealed relative to the impact chamber thereby assures that dust that is potentially stirred up due to a scrubbing cannot proceed onto the end face regions, and the extraction cross-section for a cleaning gas, protective atmosphere and/or the like together with particles to be removed is made smaller at the same time, so that the volume stream for the extraction is increased and a greater extraction power is created.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,152 also discloses an apparatus for coupling two containers for bulk goods comprising two pipe sockets as well as a safety device. Each pipe socket comprises a throttle flap seated in an essentially circular seal, whereby one throttle flap can be actively rotated via a swivel drive and, when seated against the second, passive throttle flap, entrains the latter. The safety device comprises at least one pin that is radially movable with reference to the seal and that deforms the seal surrounding the throttle flap in the closed throttle flap position such that an opening of the at least one throttle flap is prevented. Moreover, the apparatus can be equipped with a closure device that is activated when the two containers are docked, so that a release of the pipe sockets from one another during a pouring event is avoided. The safety device and the closure device should thereby be simultaneously activated by an operator via a lever but separately from the swivel drive.